Photovoltaic cells are commonly used to convert energy in the form of light into energy in the form of electricity. A typical photovoltaic cell includes a photoactive material disposed between two electrodes. Generally, light passes through one or both of the electrodes to interact with the photoactive material to convert light energy into electricity energy.
Photovoltaic cells are typically assembled into modules containing an array of photovoltaic cells connected together in series, or in parallel, or in a series-parallel combination. When all cells in a module are illuminated, each cell is forward biased. However, if one or more of the cells is shadowed (i.e., not illuminated), the shadowed cell or cells may become reversed biased because of the voltage generated by the unshadowed cells. Reverse biasing of a cell can cause degradation in cell performance or even complete cell failure.